Apple's all-new MacBook Pro

http://www.engadget.com/2008/10/14/apples-all-new-macbook-pro-packs-new-nvidia-gpu-glass-trackpad/

by noodle • 18 years ago

31 84 18 years ago

engadget.com

aerocapture• 18 years ago

What I really want to do is buy one of these at about a 30% discount, sans MacOS, and run Kubuntu on it.

speek• 18 years ago

but but but... OS X is really great! I like the *buntus, but I think that OS X is a little more polished and solid.

unalone6• 18 years ago

Yeah. You don't get a Macbook just for the aesthetic - though the aesthetic is tremendous. You get it for the operating system.

rbanffy3• 18 years ago

It has no APT (well... it has but it's kind of a bolt-on solution). And no, ports is not an adequate substitute.

No APT is a deal-breaker for me. At least as my main work computer. But looks insanely great.

petercooper3• 18 years ago

What a shame Apple's releases today have stirred up a cauldron of disappointment and inconsistency. No significant spec upgrades, prices have gone up (in the UK, at least) - we've gained slightly better video, a glass trackpad, a new case, and an SSD option.

With computer prices falling (generally), it's remarkable that Apple hasn't responded to that at all. Even the old MacBook they're trying to pass off as the new entry level one is £20 more than the same machine was yesterday (yet $100 less in the US).

Apple has muddied the whole notebook range. The MacBook now comes in two totally different styles, as does the MacBook Pro (with the 17" now being a particularly poor deal, despite the increased standard res.) And what's with the new Cinema Display? Looks nice, but it's not workable for Mac Pro users (the market Cinema Displays were meant to be for) and it's heavily overpriced. It's really just an accessory for only the newest releases.

Apple was making good progress at bringing pro-level technology to the user at prosumer prices, but this whole update has sent them back into the stratosphere. The entry level "new" MacBook is over £200 ($400) more than the old entry level MacBook.. how can I recommend this to my PC-switching family now?

axod6• 18 years ago

Yeah Porsche should drop their prices as well eh. They still cost way more than a ford focus.

petercooper3• 18 years ago

Apple is not trying to be a Porsche of the computer industry. Apple is a mass market company with growing marketshare - it's one of the biggest computer manufacturers in the world. Porsche's output is tiny compared to that of Ford.

Sarcasm is the lowest form of wit, especially when it makes no sense.

alaskamiller3• 18 years ago

Apple goes through transitional phases, if it could have lopped off that white macbook completely it surely would have. And as with any good Apple faithful knows, you don't buy version 1. If you really want a laptop it's best you wait until next Feb when the specs are updated again and the kinks worked out.

This then brings into question what WILL get updated during MacWorld. I'm thinking SnowLeopard, Mac Pro/Mac mini, Apple TV, and iPhone.

jwilliams• 18 years ago

> And as with any good Apple faithful knows, you don't buy version 1.

This is really true. A style change is a big upgrade in Apple terms. The next release of this will likely pack a lot more features.

mdasen• 18 years ago

I'm a tad frustrated. I love Apple and the Mac OS, but sometimes it really gets to be that the Mac space is a one supplier game. Apple has decided for me that I like glossy screens. I was pretty sure I hated them, but I guess Apple must be right. I also hate real buttons I guess. I'm looking forward to when Apple replaces my keyboard with a pretty glass piece as well.

I really need a new laptop (PowerBook is ready to kick the bucket), but at a certain point Apple needs to understand that some of its users are decently traditional and just really, really like the Mac OS. I feel like if Apple had to compete with other Mac OS players, I'd get a better deal and better products. Apple is making great things right now, but they're also trying to force you into a corner by saying "if you want the good Mac OS stuff, you have to put up with everything else we want to push on you".

Maybe I'm the only one who feels like Apple is getting arrogant with their marketshare. Maybe this isn't parallel to how Apple previously got arrogant and lost nearly all its marketshare. Maybe I don't want to go back to the dark days when I was openly mocked for my Mac choice.

axod6• 18 years ago

"I also hate real buttons I guess"

It is a real button. Did you not read the article/presentation etc? You can just decide that the bottom 1/3rd of the trackpad is the old button and keep using it just as you did with a satisfying click and small movement as before.

As for matt screens.... meh

timr6• 18 years ago

AFAICT, that's not a real button. That's a configurable pseudo-button. In particular, there doesn't appear to be tactile feedback -- the most important part of button-pressing for those of us old-school types who like to press buttons.

unalone6• 18 years ago

I would guess that the glossy screen is necessary for the construction of the computer. Is glass-and-matte possible? (I'm not knowledgeable here; I might be wrong.)

alaskamiller3• 18 years ago

No Apple just has a hardon for glossy.

DougBTX• 18 years ago

http://www.istockphoto.com/file_thumbview_approve/793754/2/i...

My guess is that they could, at the very least they could just add a matte coating. Also, they claim that the track pad is glass, and it certainly isn't shiny, though how an LCD would look through it I'm not 100% sure.

Prrometheus• 18 years ago

I won't use a glossy screen. If all Mac offers is glossy, then I won't use Mac.

This is why I didn't get a Dell Ubuntu laptop.

mechanical_fish• 18 years ago

Maybe I'm the only one who feels like Apple is getting arrogant with their marketshare.

Methinks you have cause and effect backwards. Apple's willingness to simplify their product line is the reason they have a growing marketshare.

Apple's been making design decisions like this since Steve Jobs insisted on the one-button mouse. And left the floppy out of the original iMac. And released a notebook without a CD-ROM drive. You can't claim that this is something new. This is how Apple works. You can have any color so long as it's aluminum.

Having to pay a premium for Firewire is what makes me unhappy, since I just bought more Firewire peripherals, including a Firewire-based audio interface. But... oh well. The good news is my old Macbook is still working just fine. When it finally kicks the bucket, I might as well spend the extra money on a Macbook Pro and get my Firewire. It's not as if I'll save any money by migrating to Windows on a Dell, or by trying to figure out if there's a 1password equivalent on Ubuntu and whether I can transfer my 250 stored passwords to it without retyping them all.

jcl• 18 years ago

You can have any color so long as it's aluminum.

Nice turn of phrase. The irony is that Ford made everything black because it was cheaper. Jobs is making everything aluminum because it acts as a distinguishing factor, so it lets him charge more... I imagine we're only a few years away from hardwood computers.

Alex3917• 18 years ago

"I also hate real buttons I guess."

First Steve came for my right mouse button,

but I was silent;

I did not need both mouse buttons...

mattmaroon2• 18 years ago

Lol @ connecting new Apple releases and the Holocaust.

akd• 18 years ago

If the hardware bothers you that much just get a Dell and install Mac OS. Steve Jobs isn't going to send the FBI to your doorstep.

tuukkah• 18 years ago

Indeed. Hardware and operating system are not meant to be tied together.

pgebhard• 18 years ago

I'm there with you on the lack of a matte display. I find it hard to believe that glare is not an issue to those with glossy screens. I think people simply deal with it because of our inherent draw towards that which is shiny...

anr2• 18 years ago

My thoughts exactly. For me, a glossy display is really hard to use, functionality is ruined.

That's the way my brain is wired, I can't help it. I only hope that notebooks with matte displays don't disappear, and that I can install Linux on them.

cpr2• 18 years ago

I thought I agreed with you, but then I got a MacBook Air, and I haven't noticed the gloss at all.

modoc2• 18 years ago

You should borrow one from a friend and try it for a few hours.

I thought I'd hate it, but I absolutely love it. I've never had glare issues in an environment that wouldn't have totally washed out my old matte MacBookPro anyhow. For my use, the glossy screen has been an improvement 100% of the time.

ojbyrne• 18 years ago

People who like 17" screens were also not invited to the party.

nailer• 18 years ago

and people who don't have a lot of money.

cpr2• 18 years ago

Patience--they are planned but delayed by component problems. In the grand scheme of things, 2-3 months doesn't really matter.

cbarning2• 18 years ago

Why don't you buy the last generation of Macbook Pro which was the best machine until yesterday and it will have all the features you want(matte screen, real button, firewire) and you'll save a ton of cash if you go refurb.

http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebObjects/AppleStore....

weegee3• 18 years ago

the Macbook keyboard takes some getting used to. it's a shame they moved away from the nicer keyboards on the old Macbook Pros. I use a bluetooth keyboard while at home with my Macbook as well as an external monitor, which makes it a lot nicer. Also leaving Firewire 400 off is interesting, as I prefer it to USB 2.0 for the higher speed. Looks like I'll not be buying another Macbook for a while.

unalone6• 18 years ago

This is more like the Air keyboard, though. And I've used that, and it's been pretty excellent.

weegee3• 18 years ago

good to know. I've yet to try that keyboard. The Air is a pretty nice looking notebook computer.

SwellJoe• 18 years ago

Also leaving Firewire 400 off is interesting, as I prefer it to USB 2.0 for the higher speed.

If you mean "lower" when you say "higher", then your statement is true.

USB 2.0 is 480 Mbps. Firewire 400 is...100, 200, or 400 Mbps. Firewire 800, on the other hand, tops out at 800 Mbps, but uses an incompatible cable type, thus making it even less common than Firewire 400, and practically useless except for folks doing high end video work (since those are the only devices I can think of that still ship with 1394 interfaces...maybe some audio devices do, too).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Serial_Bus#USB_2.0

Popular standards are good. Embrace them. Particularly when they are clearly superior, as USB 2.0 is.

dcurtis• 18 years ago

Not entirely true. USB 2.0's "peak" speed is 480Mbps, but it actually performs worse for large transfers than firewire.

From what I understand, it's designed for short bursts of data at very high speeds.

Oompa2• 18 years ago

480 Mbps is theoretical speed. Most things don't reach that. In real life usage, Firewire 400 tends to be quicker than USB 2.0, or at least that's the case from my experience.

modoc2• 18 years ago

Firewire 400 is pretty well known to generally be faster for high bandwidth data transfers than USB 2.0 despite USB's higher theoretical speed.

http://www.usb-ware.com/firewire-vs-usb.htm http://www.barefeats.com/usb2.html

weegee3• 18 years ago

the reason USB 2.0 is more common in the marketplace is that it's cheaper than firewire. Firewire, or IEEE1394, requires a license from Apple (this could be just if the company wants to use the term "Firewire"). Each firewire device has its own controller, which relieves the CPU from having to manage transfers, thus a real-world faster transfer time. I routinely do large transfers (4gb) from CF cards and having a firewire card reader is really great. I tried a USB 2.0 reader at a friends house and it was much slower.

On-Paper standards are interesting. Real-world performance is more interesting.

herdrick• 18 years ago

They're all crap. On my MPB (mid-2008 model) there's no tactile feedback at the exact point of the key firing its signal. Sure there's a feedback point, but it's about a millimeter too high (early). You have to push a key firmly into its mushy base to get it to work. Combine that with the lack of audio feedback and you get a keyboard that I hate.

There are some laptops out there with great keyboards. They don't run OS X though: http://herdrick.posterous.com/cant-i-have-tasteful-with-a-go

kylec2• 18 years ago

If Firewire is gone, is there another mechanism to replace the target disk mode? If not, that's pretty disappointing.

brandonkm• 18 years ago

I think both the new MacBook and the MacBook pro are great. Aesthetically Apple nailed it. The increased graphics capacity will no doubt be a hit with the graphic design and production crowd. The screen looks mint and the trackpad will no doubt probably become standard on all mac laptops from now on. Seems everyone is always wanting that "something more" but for someone who was holding out from buying a MacBook because I knew new ones were on the horizon, these are excellent.

symptic• 18 years ago

At least it looks great.

allenbrunson• 18 years ago

it looks very pretty. the no-seams aluminum case looks cooler than i thought it would, and makes my four-month-old macbook pro look dated by comparison.

i think the glossy screen is a deal-breaker for me, though. i'm hoping the next round will add a matte option.

kylec2• 18 years ago

To be fair, the MacBook pro has looked dated for a while. The design is nearly identical to the aluminum PowerBook G4 that came out in 2003:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PowerBook_G4#Aluminium_PowerBoo...

karmaVS• 18 years ago

Whereas the new design looks like the TiBook that preceded it.

timtrueman• 18 years ago

Anyone know where I can find more information on the SSD they offer? (e.g. MLC or SLC?)

jmatt• 18 years ago

For some reason it looks like an old circa 2004 dell laptop to me. It's the black keys with the silverish case. I haven't seen one in person but that is my immediate impression.

I'm a proud owner of a black macbook - which I love. And I think the previous macbook pros look good. Maybe I just need to see one in person, where I can see all the "detail".

That, plus the permanent glossy screen, is a deal breaker. I won't be upgrading anytime soon. Maybe the next revision will give it a new feel or look.

rbanffy3• 18 years ago

As someone being forced to use a Dell D630 notebook for work, I can tell you there is a world of difference between any Mac and any Dell...

Kilimanjaro• 18 years ago

They saved the "brick" and the netbook for Januarys Mac World.

cbarning2• 18 years ago

"Brick" is the process that makes the Aluminum body of the laptop. http://www.apple.com/macbookpro/design.html

wenbert• 18 years ago

all glossy screen :-( never liked them. for me, coding on non-glossy screens are better.

Apple's all-new MacBook Pro

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